The United Nations has asked North Korea to engage in dialogue with South Korea in an effort to defuse tensions in the wake of warning shots fired by both country's military forces.

North and South Korea exchanged shots Monday along their disputed western sea boundary, a scene of past bloodshed and naval battles, in a development that raises worry of possible clashes after North Korea's recent barrage of weapons tests.

Stephane Dujarric, the spokesman for Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said all parties concerned should "come together to foster an environment that is conducive to dialog."

South Korea's navy broadcast warnings and fired warning shots to repel a North Korean merchant ship that violated the sea boundary at 3:42 a.m., the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

North Korea's military said its coastal defense units responded by firing 10 rounds of artillery warning shots toward its territorial waters, where "naval enemy movement was detected."

It accused a South Korean naval ship of intruding into North Korean waters on the pretext of cracking down on an unidentified ship.